AustCo Consulting Company - Customer Relationship Management - Assignment Example

Running head: Name: University: Course: Date of Submission: QUESTION 1 Introduction AustCo should go ahead to integrate the two systems since integrating the two Customer Relationship Management Systems will enforce a particular set standard of operations on all the employees hence granting AustCo a rapid access to the Former-OBI profitable clientele. Though, the costs associated with the integration are quiet high it is clear that CRM integration will have potential benefits to the company. This is because the initial CRM system implemented by AustCo is not beneficial to the organization since the intended benefits for its implementation have not been achieved. Given the fact that OBI uses a customized CRM system which has helped the company acquire large market Asia and Europe integrating the two systems under one AustCo banner will help the company to expand its market share in Asia as well as Europe that initially belonged to OBI Company. This will have potential returns in terms of increasing number of customers as well as stakeholders hence increasing the total benefits initial anticipated by AustCo Consulting Company. Discussion The systems development Life Cycle or software development life cycle is described as the process of creating as well as altering the systems, models and methodologies that individuals tend to use in the process of systems development.Tradtional systems development life cycle is one of the oldest SDLC model which is more efficient and effective.This model is very important hence it will be very much beneficial to AustCo companies in terms of automating organizational activities especially when it comes to tasks assigned to the accountants as well as clerks.Given the fact that traditional systems developmenty is a kind of system which is more effective it implies that it will help AustCo to in terms of achieving greater functionality which will help technicians as well as administrators in achieving greater benefits (Beynon-Davies P, pp.92-103, 2009).From this perspective it implies that integrating the two systems will help AustCo in terms of workload reduction among other pespectives.In order to integrate the two systems more effectively then AustCo will be required to go through the entire process of systems development life cycle which actually includes;Requirment gathering and analysis which is the first phase of system life cycle development and here it includes system analysis with an aim of determing the exact problem with an attempt of fixing the system.It actaully involves the breaking down the entire system into various parts in relation to analyzing the organizational situation, analyzing the goals and breaking down the organization into what the users need.This phase is very important therefore it is important that organizations develop detailed and accurate requirments for proper customer communcation. The second phase is system design which includes development of screen layouts,business rules, processes as well as other documentation.At this stage it is necessary that AustCo puts in place required information as per the requirment analysis(Beynon-Davies P, pp.92-103, 2009).The main purpose of this design is to describe the intended sofware in depth through the use of data elements.The third phase is systems coding or building and here the modular and subsystem programming codes are usually developed at this stage. At this kind of stage it is necessary that organizations develop unit testing before integration.The fourth phase is testing and here the code is tested with an aim of checking wether system is in place or not.At this phase various types of testing are done including data set testing, unit testing, system testing as well as integration testing.The last pahse is operations and maintennace in which AustCo will be in charge of providing organizational changes as well as imolementing system requirment updates. Conclusion It is evident that integrating the two systems will be of great beneficial to AustCo as this will enable all the employees of AustCo to have shared understanding of what exactly their roles are, what is expected of them, what they expect from the business and what they wish to accomplish. This will in the end increase customer retention through various customer satisfaction levels, increased efficiencies and lower operating costs. This implies that AustCo consulting company will gain high market growth through the implementation of two systems given the fact that the system being used by OBI is highly customized. Additionally, AustCo consulting company will be in a position to utilize the existing market share of OBI in Asia, Europe as well as in other regions. Additionally, AustCo company will be in a position to off shelf employees who have been distributed all over Asia and Europe hence giving AustCo a new dimension in carrying out its activities both by the employees and managers too. This will contribute heavily to AustCo consulting company in achieving its outlined goals as well as objectives. QUESTION 2 Introduction Customer relationship management (CRM) is believed to be one of the fastest growing customer relations systems being developed by most of the companies today. Though these systems have proved to be more effective ineffective integration can possibly lead its failure hence proper precautions should be undertaken by organizations if an organization wants to succeed. From the case it is evident that AustCo has implemented a top line CRM system to assist the company in managing fast growing number of clients and stakeholders. Though, the system has been implemented the anticipated benefits have not yet been achieved. This could be attributed to various reasons such as poor planning, lack of clear objectives and not recognizing the need for the business change. Discussion Given the fact that AustCo has not achieved the desired objectives from implemented CRM system, the company wants to integrate with OBI a smaller rivalry company operating in the same industry. Since OBI is a newly established organization with strong connection as well as key stakeholders in Asia, Europe with proper implemented CRM systems , then a proper integration of two CRM systems under AustCo banner will help the company to manage its customers and stakeholders more effectively hence achieving the desired benefits. To successful integrate the two systems, Mary Morrison should follow the four major factors that include; CRM readiness assessment that includes a general organizational audit. It is important that Mary carry out an assessment of overall organizational position in terms of readiness to continue with CRM systems integration. Secondly, it is important that Mary should utilize the second factor which is CRM change management. At this point it is important she assesses the organizational strategic change as well as cultural change (Bryan, Merlin, Yuksel, pp.6-78, 2008). This will require high level of understanding, sponsorship, leadership as well as cross-functional integration in situations where complex CRM integration is required. The third fact is CRM project management which is concerned with forming of cross-functional teams which will be concerned with managing organizational CRM integration implementation. To successful achieve CRM systems integration then Mary should ensure that the CRM integration is actually in line with AustCo corporate objectives as well as they support the overall business strategy. Lastly, Mary should ensure that all the employees of AustCo are engaged in the whole process of CRM systems integration since this is believed to be one of the most important factors that contribute to successful CRM integration (Bryan, Merlin, Yuksel, pp.6-78, 2008). Here is very important that AustCo puts in place support systems for their employees. Moreover, AustCo it is important that AustCo recognizes the significant contribution of their employees beyond the normal fulfillment of certain core duties. This is because a company cannot develop good customer focused CRM systems as well as processes without motivating its trained employees. Conclusion It is therefore important that Mary clearly follows the above factor but if she does not follow the necessary steps then the proposed CRM integration by AustCo will result in great disaster to the company. Failure of the CRM systems integration can lead to poor management of customers as stakeholders hence affecting organizational benefits as well as revenues due to poor customer relations between the company and its customers. This can have a negative influence on the company hence need to integrate the systems more properly. From his perspective CRM systems fail due to various reasons such as lack of proper strategic planning prior to implementation, poor CRM integration as well as customer orientation, technological implementation problems, poor design, planning and measurement of CRM systems. Other factors which contributes to CRM integration failures consists of; capturing wrong customer information, uncertain goals, inappropriate selection of technology, inability to integrate people and processes, use of misleading metrics as well as use of improper measurement approaches. According to research conducted by Kale (2004, pp.42-26), he suggests that the seven deadly sins for failure of CRM systems integration includes; viewing the CRM initiative as technology initiative, lack of proper customer-centric vision, insufficient appreciation of customer lifetime value, inadequate support from top management, underestimating the difficulties involved in data mining as well as data integration. Mary should ensure that these factors are clearly avoided during process of CRM integration for her to succeed in integrating the systems. QUESTION 3 Customer relationship management (CRM) is defined as organizational marketing system specifically developed to manage customer relations between the company and the customers. In most cases companies tend to use CRM system for monitoring clients as well as making follow ups on prospective sales. In some cases the CRM system can be computerized in form of CRM computer software hence it is perceived as software which used by companies to store relevant customer information (Beynon-Davies, pp.92-103, 2009). The information which is usually stored by the CRM computer system database includes; phone numbers, addresses, best shopping times or calling times and previous calls made by the customers concerning product requests. Additionally, this system usually stores additional information on the products that they own which may include past purchases from the company. Off- the- shelf (OTS) is a term which refers to ready made technology hence making it more available to various organization in terms of sale, leasing or even licensing to the general public. It can also be used to refer to a particular kind of computer software or hardware systems which are in built together with other free software. This kind of software usually requires a particular configuration that is tailored towards particular organizational use hence they offer significant savings in terms of procurement, development as well as maintenance to the organization(Beynon-Davies, pp.92-103,2009). This kind of software has various advantages which includes; Off- the- shelf software is very cheap which implies that the cost of development is spread all various users, it is very sophisticated in terms of Excel and Word hence it can be used by various users at the same time. The disadvantages include; this kind of software is very complex hence it tends to comprise a number of organizational activities since this software is designed for different types of users. Secondly, many users may find it hard using the software more effectively as it requires a long time for the users to easily learn as well as understand how it works. Moreover, it is very hard to make adjustments which imply that this software cannot be easily altered. There two kind of CRM system software thus Campaign management software that is used to process customer data. The CRM software works in manner that it provides information to the users concerning the kind of products purchased by the customers in the past. This software therefore enables companies to focus their marketing campaigns across sales. The analytical capacity of this software enables organization to determine up-selling prices, price changes and a more focus on product development(Beynon-Davies, pp.92-103,2009).The second kind of CRM system software is Sales force automation software covers all the customer’s automation features which are used for tracking all the customer’s sales calls after which it records customer’s information such as customer’s name, phone number, address, time of call and purpose of call(Beynon-Davies, pp.92-103, 2009). QUESTION 4 Soft systems methodology is considered to be the best systems methodology for integrating the two systems of CRM by September 2010. Enterprise Resource Planning ERP is a computer based systems which has been integrated hence it is used by organizations to manage both external as well as internal resources. Organizations therefore tend to use this kind of system when it comes to managing various tangible assets, financial resources as well as material and human resources. Secondly, this kind of computer systems is very much important in terms of facilitating the flow of information between various organizational functions within the organizational boundaries. This kind of systems software is very important in managing organizational connections both inside and outside with organizational stakeholders. ERP systems therefore are very important in organizations since it assists organizations to consolidate all the business operations into one concrete system. Firstly, Soft systems methodology is perceived to be a systemic approach for handling real world managerial problem situations. SSM therefore attempts to cultivate learning as well as appreciation of organizational problem situation between stakeholders hence enabling them to tackle certain pre-defined problems. This implies that SSM can help organization to successfully integrate these two CRM through the use systems thinking concepts as well as making interventions in complex organizational customer relations problems (Zahir & Peter, pp.78-100, 2008). Secondly, SSM is perceived an organized managing process which involves the process of thinking out and implementing an organized action by reacting to various changes in the world which might possible affect the action implemented. This implies that SSM can successful integrate the two systems in a manner that enables organization to deal with their customer relations problems more properly (Zahir & Peter, pp.78-100, 2008). This can be done properly by resolving conflicts that could properly arise between the organization and the customers hence enabling organizations to develop a proper strategy to increase customer sales. QUESTION 5 Successful integration of CRM systems is core to organizational success at AustCo. Since AustCo is an organization known for its superior provision of operational, financial, legal and cultural advice for organizations wanting to do business abroad implies that successful integration of CRM systems will help a firm to stay ahead of competition by receiving first hand calls from the customers (Avdesh, pp.12-34,2006). This is because it has developed a top line CRM system which assists organizations in managing their growing portfolio of clients and stakeholders. Secondly, successful integration of CRM systems is core to Success at AustCo, as it tends to help the organizations to develop core relationships between the employees, partners and customers. Through this the organization is able to use effective CRM tools hence increasing customer satisfaction, employee productivity as well as overall organizational profits and revenues. Thirdly, it helps organizations to develop as well as optimize good customer management programs hence enabling organizations to reach high levels of sales, marketing and service effectiveness (Avdesh, pp.12-34, 2006). Moreover, successful integration is core to organizational success at AustCo, since it helps organizations to develop a deeper knowledge as well as understanding of good customer facing processes enabling the organization to achieve high profits. Fourthly, successful integration of CRM systems at AustCo is core to organizational success since it enables organizational sales teams to focus more on customer campaigns that will successful enable the organization to develop proper customer services that will attract more customers to the organization leading to high profits and organizational development (Avdesh, pp.12-34, 2006). QUESTION 6 A methodology is a framework that is used to structure, plan and control the entire process of information system development. A system development methodology is very essential to systems development process for various reasons. To begin with, system development methodology framework acts as basis for applying specific approaches that can be effectively used in developing as well as maintaining the developed system. Secondly, it enables a system developer to select specific techniques and processes which are very important in improving the quality of entire system development process hence eliminating any defects that could possible arise during the process (Alter,pp.67-89, 2008).This is very important as it enables a system developer to develop a system that actually meets the needs of the business success hence avoiding any necessary steps that could waste time, organizational resources as well as demoralizing the developers. Thirdly, it helps the developer to extract the required customer requirements through gathering required data from the client on the real scope that the client actually requires. The main aim of this analysis is to certain the functionality of the software hence avoiding unclear customer requirements at the start of development. In situations where the organization encounters problems resulting from poor customer requirements and specifications, then the developer can use robust management requirements methodology to correct the entire process. Robust management methodology therefore enables a developer to resolve the problem through repeatable processes that enables the organization or developer to streamline the process hence achieving the required customer quality (Alter, pp.67-89, 2008). Lastly, system methodology is very important as a tool for risk management. This is because every step in system development life cycle is associated with particular risks. This therefore implies that a developer should effectively use the specified techniques outlined in the systems methodology to manage these risks through application of specific processes in order to come up with required or quality output. Moreover, it is very useful when it comes to the implementation, testing as well as maintaining the developed software (Alter, pp.67-89, 2008). QUESTION SEVEN 7 Yes data flow diagrams are used extensively due to the following reasons. To begin with, Data flow diagrams are graphical tools which allow systems developers and users to describe the flow of data in an information system. Data flow diagrams help systems analysts as well as users to describe how information is transformed by the system during system development life cycle. Secondly, they define how the information will be processed and stored in the system (Bull, pp.592-602, 2003). This is usually shown through process box that indicates how data is being transformed and manipulated within the system by identifying how the information flows through the system processes as well as how it’s distributed to the surrounding environment. By presenting such an analysis, the user can easily understand how the system operates together with various parts which make up the entire system functions. Thirdly, DFDs help system analysts and users to analyze the gaps existing between the procedures and desired procedures as well as gaps between existing and new systems. DFD’s therefore help in identifying information requirements required for a system development such as input, output, processing and storage during the process of system development life cycle. Fourthly, Data flow diagrams are very easy to develop, use, and interpret during the process of system development life cycle. This implies that they time saving compared to entry relationships diagram. Additionally, Data Flow diagrams are very important for identifying existing business process hence improving work related system development process. Lastly, Data Flow Diagrams (DFDs) are used to indicate relationships between business processes as well as within an organization. In a case they help the system developer to understand the real nature of relationships that exists between the organization with other external systems, organizations, customers as well as other business processes assisting an individual to understand clearly what kind of system should be developed and how various activities should be carried out in the system (Harris, pp.45-89,2007). Moreover, they provide a inclusive formal framework that is very much important for designing as well as developing systems that can aid effective and efficient information processing. QUESTION 8 The main difference that exists between the two approaches is the judgment whether an action is right or wrong or whether an action is bad or good. From the Deontological approach the judgment of whether an action is right or wrong lies at the beginning of the act or when the act is being done. Thus if an individual is does good action now it perceived to be ethical even the consequences of the action are actually bad. According to research, Deontological ethics referred to an approach to ethics that makes judgment based on morality of an action, rules and duties (Agnes & Vandome, pp.2009 Deontological ethics therefore does not determine goodness or rightness of an act hence they do not look at the consequences of the third party act as suggested by consequentialism theory nor the intentions of an individual doing the act as suggested by virtue ethics. According to Deontologists an action maybe considered right even if the action results to negative effects. This theory therefore argues that an individual should do to others what they expect to be done unto them even if an individual doing the act lacks some personal virtues or has some bad intentions in doing the act. According studies done by Agnes and Vandome (2009, pp.34-45), consequences of an individual’s actions as well as intentions are not very much important. These theories hold that a person has a duty to carry out as well as abstain from particular types of actions and this duty is driven from the nature of the act itself rather than the effects product by the act. This implies that as individuals we have a responsibility to stick to our duty regardless of the consequences expected from the act. Immanuel Kant’s theory of ethics is one of the deontological theory from which he argues that to act morally right is an individual should act from a duty. Additionally, his theory indicates that the consequences of an act does not make an action right or wrong rather the motives of the person carrying out the action are the ones which indicate whether an action is morally right or wrong. This implies that Deontologists theories don’t judge action by evaluating how good the result is from an action rather deciding whether an action is right or wrong by one of the underlined rules. Rules are expressed in a negative form such as: do not lie, do not steal, and do not harm the innocent among others (Agnes & Vandome, pp.34-45, 2009). Though, they are expressed in negative form there are few cases where it is expressed in positive form such as keep your promises; treat all persons as beings with rights and tell the truth among others. Example For example if an individual wanted to commit suicide then this action could be considered unethical but if a person is terminal ill and suffering from great pain then he or she should be permitted to commit suicide hence the action is considered ethical from the Deontological since allowing such individuals does not have any harm to the world. On the other teleological approach look at the consequences of the action when determining whether an action is morally right or wrong or whether an action is good or evil. The judgment of morality of an action is done once the act has been completed. The action is perceived morally wrong or bad if it results in negative consequences hence an action is considered morally right or good if the action results are good or the results have benefits associated with it hence perceived as ethical (John,pp.45-67,2007). Example Lying to cover a friend from being jailed for stealing will result in some goodness to the friend hence from the Teleological approach it is ethical since it results to some form of goodness to the friend but is unethical from the Deontological approach since it violates the duty of being honest. QUESTION 9 The current development in information systems is rapidly changing the nature of accounting work for most of the accountants as well as auditors. This therefore implies that in order for accountants to cope with new era of information systems technology it’s important for them to acquire basic knowledge in information systems. To begin with, the knowledge of information systems will enable accountants to use special software packages hence enabling them to summarize organizational transactions as well as financial records in certain standard formats making it easier for financial analysis (Whittaker, pp.100-178, 2008). These accounting packages are essential very useful as they greatly reduce the tedious work associated with data management and recordkeeping. Secondly, knowledge of information systems is very much important as accountants can easily use this knowledge to extract some important information from organizational database hence making corrective actions in situations which involves incorrect record keepings (Whittaker, pp.100-178, 2008). Thirdly, this knowledge is very much important as currently most of the accounting professionals are required by organizations to have excellent information systems knowledge .Information systems knowledge enables accountants to apply productivity improvement software such as spreadsheets when making financial entries as well as interpreting them more easily. Lastly, it is necessary that accountants possess some knowledge in information systems since today many organizations tend to rely on accountants who are familiar with today’s systems so that they can effectively prepare for tomorrow’s systems (Whittaker, pp.100-178, 2008). To achieve this more effectively, they are required to possess technical skills as well as conceptual knowledge of accounting information systems. . References Agnes, F, V., & Vandome, J., M (2009). Deontological Ethics. Publisher: Alphascript, pp.34-45 Avdesh, G, M (2006). Management Information Systems. Publisher: Firewall MediaI, pp.12-34. Alter, S (2008). The Work System Method: Connecting People, Processes, and IT for Business Results. Works System Press, CA,pp.67-89. Beynon-Davies P. (2009). The ‘language’ of informatics: the nature of information systems International Journal of Information Management. 29(2). 92-103 Bryan, F., Merlin S., & Yuksel, E (2008).Journal of Database Marketing & Customer Strategy Management, vol 15, 68–78. doi:10.1057/dbm.2008.5; published online 9 June 2008 Barton J. G (2008). Empowering Customer Relationships. Publisher: Information Today, Inc., pp.34-67. Bull, C (2003). "Strategic Issues in Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Implementation." Business Process Management Journal 9, no. 5 pp.592–602. Buttle, F (2004). Customer Relationship Management: Concepts and Tools. Oxford: Elsevier Butterworth-Heinemann, pp.34-67 Harris, R (2007). "What is a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) System?" Darwin Magazine, December, pp.45-89 John, F (2007).Fundamentals of ethics. Georgetown: University Press, pp.45-67 Kale, S. H. (2004). CRM failure and the seven deadly sins', Marketing Management, Vol. September/October vol.13, no.5, pp.42-26 Whittaker, J.W (2006). Information Technology and Working Environment of Management Accounting. United States: Oxford University, pp.100-178 Zahir, I & Peter, E. D (2008).Evaluating information systems both in public and private sector Butterworth-Heinemann, pp.78-100 Read More